Automated item sortation and container handling systems

ABSTRACT

Systems, methods, and computer-readable media are disclosed for automated item sortation and container handling. In one embodiment, an example method may include determining, by a controller, a first item identifier of a first item at an induction portion of a sortation system, determining an order identifier associated with the first item identifier, and determining a first container associated with the order identifier. The method may include causing a first mobile carrier unit to receive the item, and causing the first mobile carrier unit to deliver the first item to the first container.

BACKGROUND

As users increasingly make online purchases, fulfilment of suchpurchases and other orders may become increasingly complicated. Forexample, a fulfillment center may have output of upwards of one millionpackages per day. With such demands, efficiency of logistics related toprocessing orders and packages may be important. Accordingly,improvements in various operations of order fulfillment, such asimprovements to picking technology, sorting technology, packingtechnology, and so forth may be desired, such that manual efforts can beredirected to different tasks.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a hybrid schematic illustration of an example use case forautomated item sortation and container handling and an example processflow in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a hybrid schematic illustration of an example use case forautomated item sortation and container handling and an example processflow in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration of an item sorting system andadditional components in accordance with one or more embodiments of thedisclosure.

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration of an example process flow forautomated item sortation and container handling in accordance with oneor more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIGS. 5-6 are schematic illustrations of a sortation system with rampsin accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of a perspective view of a containermatrix with chutes in accordance with one or more embodiments of thedisclosure.

FIGS. 8-9 are schematic illustrations of a sortation system with anelevator in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIGS. 10-11 are schematic illustrations of a sortation system with anelevator in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 12 is a schematic illustration of a perspective view of a containerslot in a container matrix in accordance with one or more embodiments ofthe disclosure.

FIG. 13 is a schematic illustration of a sortation system in an expandedconfiguration in accordance with one or more embodiments of thedisclosure.

FIG. 14 schematically illustrates an example architecture of a computersystem associated with an item sorting system in accordance with one ormore embodiments of the disclosure.

The detailed description is set forth with reference to the accompanyingdrawings. The drawings are provided for purposes of illustration onlyand merely depict example embodiments of the disclosure. The drawingsare provided to facilitate understanding of the disclosure and shall notbe deemed to limit the breadth, scope, or applicability of thedisclosure. The use of the same reference numerals indicates similar,but not necessarily the same or identical components. Differentreference numerals may be used to identify similar components. Variousembodiments may utilize elements or components other than thoseillustrated in the drawings, and some elements and/or components may notbe present in various embodiments. The use of singular terminology todescribe a component or element may, depending on the context, encompassa plural number of such components or elements and vice versa.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Overview

Fulfillment centers may be used to fulfill online purchases and otherorders. For example, fulfillment centers may include product inventorythat may be pulled when an order for a particular product or multipleproducts is placed. In some instances, the product(s) may be packed andshipped from the fulfillment center. However, the process of obtainingthe product(s), packing the product(s), and shipping the product(s) maybe complicated due to the amount of inventory, the number of orders toprocess, the size of the fulfillment center, and/or other factors. Inaddition, a portion of the fulfillment center designated for packing orshipping may be different than the portion of the fulfillment centerdesignated for holding product inventory. As a result, transportation ofproducts in an order may be time consuming.

In some instances, orders for products may include multiple items. Forexample, a user may place an order for two or more products. In suchinstances, the products that are ordered may not be in the same locationof the fulfillment center, or one of the products may take a longer timeto obtain or pick than the others. As a result, packing of the order maybe delayed until all of the items in the order are ready for packing. Toimprove the speed of processing orders, in certain instances, robots andother technology may be deployed, such that manual efforts can beredirected to other tasks. For example, robots may be used to assistwith locating products in an order during a pick process. However,directing picked products to the appropriate packing station and/orlocation may form a bottleneck in the operation of the fulfillmentcenter. For example, after products are picked, the products may beplaced in a container, such as a tote or other container, and directedto sortation machines to direct the picked products to the appropriatepacking location. For example, products in the same order may bedirected to the same packing location for consolidation and subsequentpacking. However, a tote or other container may include products thatare to be sorted to multiple different packing locations, and thesortation process may be slowed by sheer volume of products that are tobe processed and/or sorted.

Embodiments of the disclosure include methods and systems for automateditem sorting that may improve processing and fulfillment of single ormulti-item orders, or orders that include more than one item. Certainembodiments include item sorting systems with sortation systems that canbe used to rapidly sort items for one-to-one or one-to-many sortationneeds. Some embodiments include optimized process flows for processingof orders at fulfillment centers, as well as process flows or methods toincrease speed of consolidating products in a single or multi-itemorder. As a result, throughput of fulfillment centers may be improved,and/or logistics of fulfillment center operations may be lesscomplicated.

Referring to FIG. 1, an example use case 100 for automated itemsortation and container handling and an example process flow inaccordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure. Althoughdiscussed in the context of online orders, other embodiments may bedirected to any suitable use case where items, such as products,packages, or other items, are picked and/or sorted, such as instanceswhere users may pick up orders rather than receiving a shipment.

In FIG. 1, a fulfillment center may include a robotic storage platform110, a routing sorter 120, one or more sortation systems 130, and one ormore packing stations 140. The robotic storage platform 110 may be aportion of the fulfillment center at which products picked from productinventory are placed. Robots may be used to pick products from inventoryand to deliver to the robotic storage platform in some instances, whilein other instances, manual operators or a combination thereof may beused to pick products. The picking process at the robotic storageplatform may include locating a product in an order, obtaining theproduct, and sending the product to the robotic storage platform 110,such as via a conveyor belt (e.g., smooth belt, cleated belt, etc.). Inthe illustrated embodiment, products at the robotic storage platform 110may be placed in a container, such as a tote.

At the routing sorter 120, totes including products that have beenpicked may be routed to an appropriate or designated sortation system.For example, the routing sorter 120 may determine an identifierassociated with the tote, and may determine the sortation systemassociated with the tote using the identifier. The routing sorter 120may route or direct the tote to the appropriate sortation system.

The sortation systems 130 may include one or more sortation systemmachines. In FIG. 1, a first sortation system 132, a second sortationsystem 134, a third sortation system 136, and so forth may be included.Any number of sortation systems may be included. Some or all of thesortation systems may be associated with certain totes, certainfunctions, certain geographic regions, and so forth. The sortationsystems may be used to consolidate or otherwise aggregate products forsingle or multi-item orders. For example, a first tote may include afirst item of a multi-item order, and a second tote may include a seconditem of the multi-item order. The sortation system may thereforeidentify the orders associated with the respective products in a tote,and may transport the products to a container, such as a bin, associatedwith the order. When the order is complete with all of the products inthe associated bin, the order may be packed. Accordingly, a specificsortation system may be designated for fulfillment of a particularorder. At the sortation systems 130, totes that are received via therouting sorter 120 may be emptied, and the products in the respectivetotes may be transported to the appropriate bins for the orders forwhich the products were picked. Example sortation systems are discussedwith respect to at least FIGS. 3-8.

After a single or multi-item order is complete (e.g., the sortationsystem has delivered all of the products in the order to the appropriatebin, etc.), the order may be packed at the packing station 140. In someembodiments, one or more packing stations may be included. In someinstances, a packing station may service more than one sortation system,while in other instances, more than one packing station may service onesortation system. In the illustration of FIG. 1, a first packing station142 may be used to pack orders from the first sortation system 132, asecond packing station 144 may be used to pack orders from the secondsortation system 134, a third packing station 146 may be used to packorders from the third sortation system 136, and so forth. At the packingstations 140, the orders may be placed into boxes and sealed forsubsequent shipment. The packages may then be processed for shipment tothe user. In other instances, the sortation systems 130 may be used tosort packages designated for different geographic regions, and maytherefore output packages to different loading docks, etc. The sortationsystems 130 may be used for additional sortation purposes.

At the fulfillment center, an example process flow 150 illustrated inFIG. 1 may be implemented to improve the efficiency and/or throughput ofthe fulfillment center. At a first block 160, items may be picked fromthe robotic storage platform 110 into a container, such as a tote. At asecond block 170, the tote may be sent to the routing sorter 120 forrouting to a sortation system. At a third block 180, the items from thetote may be sorted from the container by the sortation system. At afourth block 190, the items may be packed into a shipment when all ofthe items in the order are sorted or when an order is complete.

FIG. 2 is a hybrid schematic illustration of an example use case forautomated item sortation and container handling and an example processflow in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure. Otherembodiments may include additional or fewer components.

In FIG. 2, an example layout of a fulfillment center 200 is depicted.The fulfillment center 200 may include a robotic field 210 at whichproduct inventory may be stored for picking, one or more routing sorters220 that may be used to route containers or other items to certainsortation systems, one or more sortation systems or walls 230 that maybe used to sort single or multi-item orders, one or more single itemsections 260 that may be used to pack single item orders, one or morelabeling machines 240 that may be used to apply shipping labels topackages, one or more flat sorters 250 and shipping sorters 270 to sortlabeled shipments (e.g., by destination, carrier, etc.) for pickup fromthe fulfillment center 200.

The fulfillment center 200 may implement a process flow 280 forprocessing single or multi-item orders. At a first block 282, items fordifferent orders may be picked into a tote or container that may be sentto a sorting machine, such as one of the sortation systems 230. The totemay include items from any order that is being consolidated by thespecific sortation system machine. The sortation system may sortsingular items into single or multi-item orders. At a second block 284,the tote may be sent to a routing sorter. At a third block 286, therouting sorter may route or divert the tote to any sortation or anassigned sortation system (e.g., the sortation system that isconsolidating items for a particular order for multi-order instances,etc.). At a fourth block 288, the sortation system may sort singularitems from the tote or container into a different tote or containerbased on the order contents. For example, the containers at thesortation system may be assigned to a particular order that may besingle or multi-item. At a fifth block 290, the order may be packedafter all items in the order are sorted.

The sortation system machines 220 may include bins or containers ofdifferent sizes (e.g., small, medium, large, etc.) and may beconfigured, in one example, to handle items that weigh up to twenty ormore pounds. In some embodiments, the sortation system machines 220 mayinclude multiple chutes, and may be configured to sort items at a rateof about 3,600 units per hour. In some instances, the sortation systemmachines 220 may have two inductors (e.g., one on each side, etc.) forinducting items from containers, and may be modular.

In some embodiments, the sortation system machines 220 may replace otherprocesses, such as manual processes. For example, manual induction ofproducts from a tote to a sorter machine may be a bottleneck that isavoided by the systems and methods described herein. The sortationsystem 230 may include cross-belt shuttles that sort singulated productsinto containers or totes. Sortation systems 230 may be capable ofsorting at a rate of 3,500 units per hour. Certain sortation systemmachines 230 may be configured to handle items of up to twenty pounds,or more in some instances (e.g., 100 pounds or more), with dimensions ofabout 18″×14″×8″ or 28″×14″×9″, which may cover almost all products atthe fulfillment center 200. The sortation system 230 may operate as ahigh-speed, high-destination sort solution that intakes items orpackages and sorts them into containers using a shuttle that travelsvertically and horizontally inside the machine (or outside in someinstances).

Individual sortation systems may be item sorting systems, and mayinclude a number of, such as two or more, modular sorting machinescoupled in series, or otherwise adjacent to each other and connected.The modular sorting machines may include a first modular sortingmachine. The modular sorting machines may be configured to singulateitems from a tote comprising a plurality of items into a plurality ofbins (e.g. induct individual items from a bin that has multiple items,and place the inducted items into the appropriate bin, where bins areassociated with single or multi-item orders. The tote from which itemsare inducted may be associated with the individual sortation systemmachine (e.g., the modular sorting machines that form the individualsortation system machine, etc.).

Accordingly, in some embodiments, sortation systems may be arranged inrows and may receive assigned totes from a routing sorter, therebystreamlining fulfillment center operation and reducing labor and spacecosts. The sortation systems may process totes for multi-order sortationand consolidation. As a result, there may no longer be a need tosingulate and send items to a wall for manual extraction, because eachtote may be assigned to a particular sortation system machine. Inductstations can be replaced with sortation system machines.

In another embodiment, pickers may pick items directly to a segmentedbelt conveyor at a station that is near a sortation system machine.Other nearby pick stations may also pick items directly to conveyancefor the same sortation system machine. Picked items being transported toa single sortation system machine may merge together to be inducted intotheir unique sortation system machine, where multi-item orders may beconsolidated and sent to packing.

Embodiments of the disclosure include automated item sortation andcontainer handling. Certain embodiments may improve processing speedand/or throughput of fulfillment centers. Certain embodiments mayimprove performance of mechanical equipment for sortation and/orconsolidation of items for multi-item orders. While described in thecontext of online orders, aspects of this disclosure are more broadlyapplicable to other forms of product sortation.

Example embodiments of the disclosure provide a number of technicalfeatures or technical effects. For example, in accordance with exampleembodiments of the disclosure, certain embodiments of the disclosure mayimprove processing speed, throughput, and/or efficiency of fulfillmentcenters. The above examples of technical features and/or technicaleffects of example embodiments of the disclosure are merely illustrativeand not exhaustive.

One or more illustrative embodiments of the disclosure have beendescribed above. The above-described embodiments are merely illustrativeof the scope of this disclosure and are not intended to be limiting inany way. Accordingly, variations, modifications, and equivalents of theembodiments disclosed herein are also within the scope of thisdisclosure. The above-described embodiments and additional and/oralternative embodiments of the disclosure will be described in detailhereinafter through reference to the accompanying drawings.

Illustrative Embodiments and Use Cases

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration of an item sorting system andadditional components in accordance with one or more embodiments of thedisclosure. Other embodiments may include additional or fewercomponents. The illustration of FIG. 3 is not to scale, and may not beillustrated to scale with respect to other figures. The sortation systemillustrated in FIG. 3 may be the same sortation system discussed withrespect to FIGS. 1-2.

In FIG. 3, an example use case 300 including a set of totes 310 and itemsorting system(s), or sortation system(s) 320, is depicted. The set oftotes 310 may include one or more totes that may be assigned to, orotherwise associated with, the sortation system 320. For example, Tote1, Tote 35, Tote 3645, and so forth may be associated with the sortationsystem 320. The totes may have identifiers, such as alphanumeric orother identifiers. The totes may be used to place items that have beenpicked into the totes. The items that are placed in the totes may beassociated with orders that are to be consolidated by the sortationsystem 320. For example, Tote 1 may include item 1, item 16, and item23, Tote 35 may include item 1656, Tote 3645 may include item 989, item145, and item 34, and so forth. The item sorting system, or thesortation system 320, may be configured to receive items from a totethat includes one or more, such as multiple items, and the tote may berouted to the item sorting system or the sortation system 320.

The totes 310 may be directed to the sortation system 320 for sortingand consolidation. For example, items in the totes 310 may be inductedinto the sortation system 320 via a conveyor belt.

The sortation system 320 may include one or more modules, and may beadjusted in size by adding or removing modules or standalone sortationsystems as needed. For example, the sortation system 320 may include afirst sortation system 330 and a second sortation system 340. The secondsortation system 340 may be coupled to the first sortation system 330,or may be a standalone sortation system.

The respective sortation systems 330, 340 may include one or more bins,or containers that hold items of a single or multi-item order. Forexample, as illustrated in side view 360, the second modular itemsorting machine 340 may include a first chute 370, or vertical stacking,of bins, and a second chute 380 of bins. The bins in the respectivechutes may be of different sizes or dimensions, or may be placed indifferent vertical locations along the chute. The sortation system 320may include a plurality of bins disposed in an array along one or moresides of the first modular item sorting machine 330 and the secondmodular item sorting machine 340. The respective bins may be configuredto be repositioned within different chutes and/or at different verticallocations. In FIG. 3, Bin 1 and Bin 2 may have the same height, whileBin 3 in the same column or chute may have a different height. Anysuitable number of bins may be included in a chute and/or array.

Items or products inducted from the totes 310 may be sorted and directedto a bin associated with the order for which the item was picked. Theitems may be transported by one or more shuttles or mobile carrier units350, which may move in one or more directions within the sortationsystem 320. In some embodiments, the shuttles or mobile carrier units350 may be positioned outside of the sortation system 320. In someembodiments, the sortation system(s) 320 may include one or more mobilecarrier units 350 or other shuttles that can be used to move items, suchas products, packages, containers, and so forth. Mobile carrier units350 may include one or more RFIDs that can be used to retaintraceability of an item to a carrier, such that the entire system maynot have to be purged in case of a complete power loss. The lineage ortraceability can be established by associating a barcode or otheridentifier of the item with the carrier RFID tag at the point ofinduction or elsewhere.

For example, Item 1 may be inducted from Tote 1 and placed in Bin 3,along with Item 989 and Item 34 from Tote 3645. Bin 3 may be associatedwith an order that included those three items, and may therefore beready for packing. Similarly, Item 16 may be routed to Bin 4, Item 23may be routed to Bin 5, Item 145 may be routed to Bin 6, and so forth.Any number of bins, totes, and/or modules may be included.

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration of an example process flow 400 forautomated item sortation and container handling in accordance with oneor more embodiments of the disclosure. One or more of the blocksillustrated in FIG. 4 may be performed in a different order or across adistributed environment. In some embodiments, the operations of processflow 400 may be performed by a controller or computer system incommunication with one or more sortation systems.

At block 410, a first item identifier of a first item at an inductionportion of a sortation system may be determined. For example, a computersystem or controller having one or more computer processors coupled tomemory and configured to execute computer-executable instructions may beconfigured to determine a first item identifier of a first item at aninduction portion of a sortation system. The first item identifier maybe a barcode or other machine readable identifier. To determine thefirst item identifier, the computer system may determine the identifierusing a scanner or other component. The first item identifier may beassociated with a first item. The first item may be part of an order,such as an online order, and may therefore be associated with an orderidentifier. The induction portion of the sortation system may be aportion of the sortation system at which items or containers are inputor fed into the sortation system. In some instances, the items orcontainers may be input manually, while in other instances, the items orcontainers may be automatically fed into the sortation system usingmaterials handling equipment. The computer system may be local or remoterelative to the sortation system, and may be in wired or wirelesscommunication with one or more components of the sortation system. Insome embodiments, determination of a first item may be completed usingvarious inspection methods, such as weight scans (e.g., using a weightsensor to determine whether an item weight comports with an expecteditem weight, etc.) or volumetric scans (e.g., using computer visionpoint cloud to determine whether a size of an item comports with anexpected item size, etc.) in addition to, or instead of, barcode scansas a secondary verification to ensure that the item is accuratelyidentified. For example, a barcode scan may be inaccurate due to morethan one label on an item or package, etc., so a secondary volumetricscan may provide additional verification. If secondary verification doesnot result in identification of the item, the item or package may berouted to a location for subsequent automated or manual inspection.

At block 420, an order identifier associated with the first itemidentifier may be determined. For example, the computer system maydetermine an order identifier associated with the first item identifier.The order identifier may be associated with each of the item identifiersin an order. The computer system may determine, for example using adatabase, the order identifier associated with the first itemidentifier. In some instances, the first item identifier may beassociated with more than one order identifier. In such instances, thecomputer system may determine the order identifier that corresponds tothe order that is being sorted by the sortation system, as opposed to adifferent sortation system.

At block 430, a first container associated with the order identifier maybe determined. For example, the computer system may determine a firstcontainer associated with the order identifier. The sortation system mayinclude a number of different containers, such as totes, bins, or bags,and the like. The containers may be used to aggregate items for certainorders, packages destined for similar destinations, and so forth.Accordingly, a single container may be associated with one or more orderidentifiers in some instances. The computer system may determine thefirst container that is located at the sortation system that is beingused to aggregate items for the order identifier. The order identifierassociated with a container may remain static until all of the itemsassociated with the order are aggregated in the container.

At block 440, a first mobile carrier unit may be caused to retrieve thefirst item. For example, the computer system may be configured to causea first mobile carrier unit to retrieve the item. The computer systemmay be in communication with one or more mobile carrier units. Mobilecarrier units may be configured to retrieve items and/or deposit itemsinto containers, retrieve and/or deposit empty containers into containerslots, retrieve and/or deposit full or completed containers to anoutbound portion of the sortation system, and so forth. The mobilecarrier units may be configured to move about the sortation system usingany suitable form of propulsion, such as motors, rollers, belts, mobiledrive units, and so forth. Mobile carrier units may include componentsconfigured to move items and containers, such as rollers, arms,sidewalls, and/or other components. The computer system may sendinstructions or commands to a particular mobile carrier unit to retrievethe first item from the induction portion of the sortation system. Themobile carrier may therefore maneuver to the induction portion toretrieve or otherwise receive the first item.

At block 450, the first mobile carrier unit may be caused to deliver thefirst item to the first container. For example, the computer system maycause the first mobile carrier unit to deliver the first item to thefirst container. The computer system may send instructions or commandsto the first mobile carrier unit to navigate to the designated firstcontainer, and to deposit or deliver the first item to the firstcontainer. The first mobile carrier unit may navigate to the firstcontainer using one or more ramps in some instances, or an elevator liftin other instances. For example, the computer system may cause atrack-based pathway to configure a path on which the first mobilecarrier unit can move to reach the first container. The first containermay be on different levels of the sortation system, and the computersystem may cause the first mobile carrier unit to follow the path and/ortake an elevator to the appropriate level to reach the first container.

At optional block 460, it may be determined that the first containercomprises the items associated with the first order identifier. Forexample, the computer system may determine that the first containercomprises the items associated with the first order identifier. Thefirst order identifier may be associated with one or more items, and maytherefore be associated with one or more items. The computer system maydetermine that the one or more items are positioned in the firstcontainer. For example, all of the items in the order may have beenplaced into the first container by one or more mobile carrier units. Fororders with multiple items, the computer system may determine that theorder identifier is associated with a second item identifier of a seconditem, and may determine that the first container includes the first itemand the second item. The computer system may therefore track items thatare input and output from the sortation system, as well as the contentsof respective containers during the sortation process. In someembodiments, the carrier units may be the same for both item deliveryand tote extraction, whereas in other embodiments, the carrier units maybe different for item delivery and tote extraction. For example, carrierunits used for tote extraction may include additional or differenthardware than carrier units used for item or package delivery tocontainers.

At optional block 460, a second mobile carrier unit may be caused toretrieve the first container. For example, the computer system may causea second mobile carrier unit to retrieve the first container. In someinstances, the second mobile carrier unit may be the same unit as thefirst mobile carrier unit, while in other instances, the second mobilecarrier unit may be a different unit. To retrieve the first container,the mobile carrier unit may navigate to the container slot in which thefirst container is present, and may retrieve the first container. Forexample, the mobile carrier unit may pull the container out of thecontainer slot, or the container slot may include hardware, such as atilting floor, an extendable arm, powered rollers, or other hardware topush or deposit the container onto the mobile carrier unit.

At optional block 480, the second mobile carrier unit may be caused todeliver the first container to a full container outbound portion of thesortation system. For example, the computer system may cause the secondmobile carrier unit to deliver the first container to a full containeroutbound portion. After the container includes all of the items in anorder, the container may be determined to be full. In some instances, afull container may not be physically full. In other instances, a fullcontainer may be physically full. The full container outbound portion ofthe sortation system may be a conveyor belt or other portion of thesortation system to which containers that are outbound from thesortation system may be routed. The containers that are outbound mayinclude sorted items. After full containers are removed from thesortation system, the container slot from which the full container wasremoved may be replaced with an empty container, which may then beassociated with a different order identifier. For example, the computersystem may cause a container elevator to move a container from an emptycontainer inbound portion to the first mobile carrier unit. The emptycontainer inbound portion may be an input queue or holding at whichempty containers may be input or fed into the sortation system.

In some embodiments, instead of, or in addition to, determining that thefirst container comprises the items associated with the first orderidentifier, the computer system may determine that the container isfull. A full container may include a certain predetermined set of items,or may be physically full. The computer system may then cause a mobilecarrier unit to retrieve the second container after delivering the firstitem to the first container. For example, a mobile carrier unit, duringthe same trip through a container matrix, may first deliver an item, andmay then retrieve a full container for delivery to the outbound portionto improve efficiency.

FIGS. 5-6 are schematic illustrations of a sortation system 500 withramps in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.Other embodiments may include additional or fewer components. Theillustration of FIGS. 5-6 may not be to scale, and may not beillustrated to scale with respect to other figures. The sortation systemillustrated in FIGS. 5-6 may be the same sortation system discussed withrespect to FIGS. 1-4.

In FIG. 5, the sortation system 500 may include a container matrix 510,an induction portion 520, an outbound portion 530, an empty containerintake portion 540, one or more tracks, and one or more mobile carrierunits 580. In the illustrated example, the sortation system 500 may havea length of about seventy feet and a width of about eight feet.

The container matrix 510 may be a modular rack system that includes oneor more vertically spaced or horizontally spaced levels, where some orall of the levels may include container slots. The container matrix 510may house containers, such as totes, bins, bags, or other containers,that can be used to hold sorted items, such as items that correspond tocertain orders. The container matrix 510 may include an array ofcontainers with removable and/or rearrange-able containerconfigurations. The containers may be of the same or differentdimensions. The container matrix 510 may include one or more levels,such as a first level and a second level. The first level may include afirst plurality of container slots configured to receive individualcontainers, and the second level may include a second plurality ofcontainer slots configured to receive individual containers. The firstlevel may be an upper level or lower level with respect to the secondlevel.

The induction portion 520 may be an induction point for items, such asproducts or packages, that are input at the sortation system 500 forsortation. The sortation system 500 may sort the inducted items intovarious containers at the container matrix 510. Items input at theinduction portion 520 may be retrieved by one or more of the mobilecarrier units 580 and fed or deposited into designated containers. Atthe induction portion 520, an item may be identified, and a computersystem may send the mobile carrier unit 580 instructions to retrieve theitem and deliver the item to a specific location. The computer systemmay manage traffic flow of mobile carrier units 580 throughout thesortation system 500, so as to improve efficiency and avoid collisions.The induction portion 520 may be configured to transport individualitems into the sortation system 500.

The outbound portion 530 may be where containers that are full, or thatinclude all of the items in an order, may be directed after completionof sortation. For example, containers that are ready to move to adifferent stage or portion of a fulfillment center may be retrieved fromthe container matrix 510 by one or more of the mobile carrier units 580and delivered to the outbound portion 530. The outbound portion 530 maybe configured to transport full containers out of the sortation system500.

The empty container intake portion 540 may be where empty containers areinput to the sortation system 500. For example, as full or completedcontainers are removed from container slots at the container matrix 510,the container slots may be filled with empty containers. For example,one or more mobile carrier units may retrieve an empty container fromthe empty container intake portion 540 and deliver the empty containerto an empty container slot. In some embodiments, the mobile carrier unitmay retrieve an empty container after delivering a completed container,such as by moving backwards or forwards along a track. Although theinbound portion 520, outbound portion 530, and empty container intakeportion 540 are illustrated in a certain arrangement in FIG. 5, otherarrangements may be used. For example, the empty container intakeportion 540 may be placed on an opposite side of the inbound portion 520relative to the outbound portion 530. The empty container intake portion540 may be configured to transport empty containers into the sortationsystem 500, or to feed empty containers into the sortation system 500.The induction portion 520, the outbound portion 530, and the emptycontainer intake portion 540 may optionally include conveyor belts, andmay be disposed adjacent to each other.

The sortation system 500 may include one or more tracks. The tracks maybe used by the mobile carrier units 580 to move between the respectiveportions of the sortation system 500 and the container matrix 510. Forexample, the mobile carrier unit 580 may move along a certain track orset of tracks to reach a first container, and along a different set oftracks to reach a second container. Tracks may lead to different levelsof the container matrix 510. In FIG. 5, the sortation system 500 mayinclude a first track 550, a second track 552, a third track 554, and afourth track 556. The tracks may be rails or other forms of tracks thatguide the mobile carrier units 580. The tracks may be open or closedloop. The mobile carrier units 580 may move unidirectionally orbidirectionally along the tracks. In one example, the mobile carrierunits 580 may move in a counterclockwise direction about the tracks. Thetracks may be disposed at different levels. For example, the first track550 may be disposed at a first level, the second track 552 may bedisposed at a second level, the third track 554 may be disposed at athird level, and the fourth track 556 may be disposed at a fourth level.

The tracks and/or the sortation system 500 may include one or more rampsthat lead to different levels of the container matrix 510. The ramps maybe used by the mobile carrier units 580 to access the different levelsof the container matrix 510 and the containers located on the differentlevels. For example, a first ramp 560 may lead from the fourth track 556to the third track 554. A second ramp 562 may lead from the fourth track556 to the second track 552. A third ramp 564 may lead from the fourthtrack 556 to the first track 550, and so forth. In the illustratedembodiment, the fourth track 556 may therefore be used to access theother tracks of the sortation system 500.

The fourth track 556 may serve as a queuing track, which may be a trackat which unused mobile carrier units are queued as the units awaitinstructions to retrieve or deliver items or containers, or may be usedby mobile carrier units to move between different tracks and/or levelsof the container matrix 510. For example, the mobile carrier unit 580may access the third track 554 using the first ramp 560, or the secondtrack 552 using the second ramp 562, and so forth. The mobile carrierunits 580 may therefore be configured to move between the tracks via thequeuing track, or the fourth track 556 in the illustration of FIG. 5.The queuing track may form a closed loop that passes through thecontainer matrix 510.

To move between tracks or track components (e.g., ramps, etc.), thesortation system 500 may include any number of switches 570 or othermechanisms to divert mobile carrier units 580 in a certain direction oronto a certain track. Operation or configuration of switches may becontrolled by the same computer system or controller that controlsoperation of the mobile carrier units 580, or by a different computersystem. For example, a first switch 572 may be used to divert mobilecarrier units 580 from the fourth track 556 to the third ramp 564, asecond switch 574 may be used to divert mobile carrier units 580 fromthe fourth track 556 to the second ramp 562, and so forth. Switches maybe used to divert mobile carrier units 580 off of ramps and back ontothe fourth track 556.

The mobile carrier units 580 may individually include one or moreconveyor belts, such as cross-belt conveyors or other mechanicalcomponents, and may be configured to move along the respective tracks ofthe sortation system 500. The mobile carrier units 580 may be configuredto perform various functions, such as retrieving items, depositing itemsinto containers on the different levels of the container matrix 150,retrieving full containers from container slots, depositing emptycontainers into container slots, and other functions. The mobile carrierunits 580 may be controlled by one or more computer systems orcontrollers. The mobile carrier units 580 may include at least twosidewalls on opposite sides of the mobile carrier unit. The sidewallsmay be used to secure a payload. Some embodiments may not includesidewalls. Some embodiments may include one or more doors that can beopened or closed. For example, the mobile carrier unit may include afirst door disposed transverse to the at least two sidewalls, where themobile carrier unit is configured to automatically open and/or close thefirst door. In some instances, the first door, when in an open position,may form a chute that can be angled towards a container on a lowerlevel. In some instances, the mobile carrier unit may include a seconddoor disposed opposite the first door, where the mobile carrier unit isconfigured to automatically open and/or close the second door. Mobilecarrier units that include multiple sidewalls and/or doors that serve assidewalls may be used to secure various types of payloads, such as roundballs or objects that may remain contained within the sidewalls duringmovement.

The mobile carrier units 580 may travel on the track system of thesortation system 500 with fully open, partially enclosed, or fullyenclosed surfaces. For example, the mobile carrier units 580 may includeone or more sidewalls to secure payloads. Individual tracks about whichthe mobile carrier units 580 may move can be configured in open orclosed loops of the sortation system 500, such that the mobile carrierunits 580 may be recirculated within the system and/or moved to aholding area (e.g., the queuing track, etc.). The tracks can also belayered vertically or horizontally based on the desired throughput fromthe sortation system 500, as well as footprint restrictions. In someembodiments, the tracks may include diverting features and/ormechanisms, such as switches 570, that may allow individual mobilecarrier units 580 to be directed to different tracks as well asdifferent elevations vertically. As a result, the sortation system 500may provide a flexible track layout that may include bypass loops,divert loops, etc. and consequently the ability to queue mobile carrierunits 580, level load different systems of the sortation system 500based on demand and/or any bottlenecks that may be encountered.

In some embodiments, the mobile carrier units 580 andmulti-layer/multi-level tracks may be used in conjunction with a highstorage density modular rack system, or the container matrix 510, thatis used to receive, hold, and/or dispatch different articles, asillustrated at least in FIG. 5. The mobile carrier units 580 may beuniversal and can accommodate payloads of various form factors (e.g.,individual items, full and empty totes, boxes, etc.). The payload may bedisposed within an open top box type enclosure with two fixed walls, andoptionally two movable walls, that allow induction and deposition of thepayload. The optional movable walls of the enclosure of the mobilecarrier units 580 may be actuated mechanically by the mobile carrierunits 580, or by one or more components on the track or the modular racksystem. The mobile carrier units 580 may be configured to move withvarious means of propulsion (e.g., conveyors, linear induction motors,drive motors, drive rollers, etc.).

The mobile carrier units 580 may include, for example on a top surface,an article movement system, such as a powered belt that can move in oneor more directions, such as a direction different from the direction ofmotion of the mobile carrier unit 580, tilting floors or units, etc. Thearticle movement system may be configured to move items off the carrierand into a container (e.g., totes, bags, boxes, etc.). The containersmay be held inside one or more cells of the modular storage racks. Aquick change interface may be provided so that different articlemovement technologies can be attached to the individual mobile carrierunits 580. The modular rack system can contain sensing and designfeatures to ensure that any payload on the mobile carrier units 580 isproperly deposited, held and either offloaded back to the mobile carrierunits 580 or an alternative takeaway option for dispatch. Modularity inthe modular rack system can include individual cells to hold articles ora column or row of cells that can be individually moved or a bank ofcolumns or rows of cells that can be moved as a unit.

In FIG. 6, operation of the sortation system 500 is depicted in variousstates. At a first state 600, the sortation system 500 may be in aneutral state, where mobile carrier units are delivering items tocontainers in the container matrix. At a second state 610, empty mobilecarrier units 620 may exit the container matrix and be directed backtoward the induction portion of the sortation system. At a third state630, as the empty mobile carrier units approach the induction portion,the mobile carrier units may be queued in a queue 640 so as to manageflow and traffic by the computer system. As the different mobile carrierunits from different ramps merge onto the queuing track, motion ofindividual mobile carrier units may be controlled to avoid collisions.In some embodiments, mobile carrier units may automatically performcertain movements without the instruction from a computer system.Although the illustrated states appear to depict all of the mobilecarrier units completing a single task at the same time and returning tothe induction portion, it is understood that different mobile carrierunits may be at different stages of completion of a task at any giventime, and that mobile carrier units may continuously perform taskswithout waiting for other mobile carrier units to perform or completetasks.

FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of a schematic and perspective viewof a container matrix 700 with chutes in accordance with one or moreembodiments of the disclosure. Other embodiments may include additionalor fewer components. The illustration of FIG. 7 may not be to scale, andmay not be illustrated to scale with respect to other figures. Thecontainer matrix 700 illustrated in FIG. 7 may be the same containermatrix discussed with respect to FIGS. 1-6.

Mobile carrier units 710 may move on rails or tracks 740 through thecontainer matrix 700 to deposit items, retrieve full containers, and soforth. The container matrix 700 may include a number of chutes 720. Thechutes 720 may be used to guide items into certain containers 730. Thecontainers 730 may be in container slots and may be removed from thecontainer slots when full or complete. For example, the container slotsmay include one or more extender arms, drive rollers, conveyor belts, orother components configured to move or push containers from a containerslot onto the mobile carrier units 710. In some instances, mobilecarrier units may be configured to pull or remove containers from thecontainer slots.

As illustrated in a schematic view 750, the mobile carrier units 710 mayinclude a carrier portion 760 coupled to a shuttle portion 762. Theshuttle portion 762 may cause the mobile carrier unit 710 to move alongthe track 740 and may include one or more drive motors. The carrierportion 760 may be removable and may include rollers, belts, sidewalls,and/or other components to secure a payload 770 and to move the payload770 to and/or from containers or other locations. In some instances, thecontainers may be angled away from the chute, such that the payload 770slides towards a far end of the container when the payload 770 isdropped down the chute. Such angling may reduce the likelihood ofbuildup of items in the container near the end of the chute.

In the schematic illustration 750, a mobile carrier unit at a top levelof the container matrix 700 may be configured to release the payload 770down a chute 780 into a container 790 that is on a level below themobile carrier unit. A mobile carrier unit at a middle level of thecontainer matrix 700 may be configured to release its payload eitherdown a chute to a container at a lower level, or horizontally to acontainer on the same level. A mobile carrier unit at a lower level 792of the container matrix 700 may be configured to release its payloadhorizontally to a container on the same level. Accordingly, mobilecarrier units at the top level of the container matrix 700 may only haveitems and not containers as payload, mobile carrier units at middlelevels of the container matrix 700 may have items and containers aspayload, and mobile carrier units at the bottom level of the containermatrix 700 may only have containers and not items as payload. Thechute-based container matrix of FIG. 7 may be included with anysortation system, such as that described with respect to FIGS. 5-6 andFIGS. 8-9.

FIGS. 8-9 are schematic illustrations of a sortation system 800 with anelevator in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.Other embodiments may include additional or fewer components. Theillustration of FIG. 8 may not be to scale, and may not be illustratedto scale with respect to other figures. The sortation system illustratedin FIG. 8 may be the same sortation system discussed with respect toFIGS. 1-4.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 8-9, the mobile carrier units maybe configured to move along a certain track, and may not move betweenlevels in some instances. Accordingly, a footprint of the sortationsystem 800 may be reduced.

In FIG. 8, the sortation system 800 may include an inbound portion 830,which may be a conveyor belt, set of rollers, or other componentconfigured to deliver items, such as products or containers 820, to thesortation system 800. The sortation system 800 may include one or moreelevator lifts that may be used to move containers 820 to differentlevels of the sortation system 800. For example, the sortation system800 may include a container elevator 840 that may be configured to movevertically between various tracks of the sortation system 800, such as afirst track 870, a second track 872, a third track 874, and so forth.The container elevator 840 may move along a shaft 860. The containerelevator 840 may include motorized rollers or belts that can be used tomove the container 820. The container elevator 800 may be configured todeliver empty containers or items to the mobile carrier units, and/or toreceive full containers from the mobile carrier units.

As illustrated in a second state 810, as the container elevator 840raises the container 820 to the first level 870, a mobile carrier unit850 may move into position to receive the container 820 from thecontainer elevator 840. The mobile carrier unit 850 may deliver thecontainer 820 to a container slot 880 that is on the same level as themobile carrier unit 850.

FIG. 9 is a schematic illustration 900 of a top view of the sortationsystem 800. In FIG. 9, an incoming container 920 may be guided along aninbound portion 920 and directed to a container lift of the sortationsystem. The container lift may move the container 920 to the designatedlevel at which the associated container slot in which the container 920is to be deposited is located. When the container 920 is at theappropriate level, a mobile carrier unit 930 may move along a track 940and receive the container 920. The mobile carrier unit 930 may beconfigured to move bidirectionally along the track 940. In someinstances, the mobile carrier units 930 may be confined to the track940, and may not be configured to move to other levels of the sortationsystem. The mobile carrier units 930 may be configured to move payloadsin multiple directions, such as into container slots 950 and 960 onopposite sides, or container slots 970 and 980 on opposite sides,thereby increasing the total number of containers and container slotsthat can be serviced by the mobile carrier units 930 without a dramaticincrease in footprint. In some instances, the container slots 960, 980may include hardware to pull container into or push containers out ofrespective container slots. As containers are filled, the containers maybe retrieved and delivered to another container elevator or the samecontainer elevator and pushed to an outbound portion 990 of thesortation system. The container slots may be configured to pushcontainers onto mobile carrier units 930 using various mechanical means,as illustrated by arrows in FIG. 9.

FIGS. 10-11 are schematic illustrations of a sortation system with anelevator in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.Other embodiments may include additional or fewer components. Theillustration of FIGS. 10-11 may not be to scale, and may not beillustrated to scale with respect to other figures. The sortation systemillustrated in FIGS. 10-11 may be the same sortation system discussedwith respect to FIGS. 1-4.

In FIG. 10, a sortation system 1000 is illustrated in top view.Induction belts 1010 may be used to guide or direct items, packages, orother objects into the sortation system 1000 for sortation intocontainers. Items inducted at the induction belts 1010 may be shuttledto an elevator system 1030 using one or more mobile carrier units 1020.In some embodiments, the mobile carrier units 1020 may be queued on aqueuing track that is disposed under the induction belts 1010, such thatitems can be dropped off the induction belts 1010 into the mobilecarrier units 1020. At the elevator system 1030, the mobile carrierunits 1020 may be raised or lowered to the appropriate level at whichthe container destination of the payload in the mobile carrier unit islocated. The containers may be arranged in container slots in acontainer matrix. Completed containers, or full containers, may be sentout of the sortation system 1000 using outbound conveyors 1040. Althougha certain number of induction belts 1010 and outbound conveyors 1040 areillustrated, any number may be used. More than one elevator system 1030may be included.

FIG. 11 illustrates a sortation system 1100 in perspective view. Thesortation system 1100 may be the same sortation system 1000 as thatillustrated in FIG. 10. As illustrated in FIG. 11, the induction belts1110 may be disposed relatively higher than the mobile carrier units,and an elevator system 1120 may be used to elevate the mobile carrierunits in which items are disposed. A container matrix 1130 may includecontainers in which items from the mobile carrier units may bedeposited. Outbound conveyors 1140 may be directed away from thesortation system 1100 along rollers or conveyors.

FIG. 12 is a schematic illustration of a perspective view of a containerslot 1200 in a container matrix in accordance with one or moreembodiments of the disclosure. The container slot 1200 may be includedin any of the container matrices of FIGS. 1-11. In FIG. 12, thecontainer slot 1200 may include a container 1210 that may be removablypositioned in the container slot 1200. The container may be angled awayfrom an input face of the container slot, such as at an angle of about10 degrees, about 15 degrees, and so forth, to avoid buildup of items onone side of the container 1210. A container lift 1220 may be disposed inthe container slot 1200. The container lift 1220 may be configured tolift the container 1210 from the angled position to a horizontalposition. The container lift 1220 may be used to lift one or morecontainers, such as the container 1210 and one or more adjacentcontainers.

FIG. 13 is a schematic illustration of a sortation system 1300 in anexpanded configuration in accordance with one or more embodiments of thedisclosure. The sortation system 1300 may be the same sortation systemas that illustrated in FIGS. 10-11. As illustrated in FIG. 13, thesortation system 1300 may be expanded or separated into an expandedconfiguration 1310 for maintenance purposes, for example. The expandedconfiguration 1310 may be formed by separating components of thesortation system 1300 using rails, such as the overhead and underneathsupport rails illustrated in FIG. 13. The modules of the sortationsystem 1300 may be separated by sliding along the rails. When returnedto a non-expanded configuration, the sortation system 1300 may consume arelatively smaller footprint.

One or more operations of the methods, process flows, or use cases ofFIGS. 1-13 may have been described above as being performed by a userdevice, or more specifically, by one or more program module(s),applications, or the like executing on a device. It should beappreciated, however, that any of the operations of the methods, processflows, or use cases of FIGS. 1-13 may be performed, at least in part, ina distributed manner by one or more other devices, or more specifically,by one or more program module(s), applications, or the like executing onsuch devices. In addition, it should be appreciated that processingperformed in response to the execution of computer-executableinstructions provided as part of an application, program module, or thelike may be interchangeably described herein as being performed by theapplication or the program module itself or by a device on which theapplication, program module, or the like is executing. While theoperations of the methods, process flows, or use cases of FIGS. 1-13 maybe described in the context of the illustrative devices, it should beappreciated that such operations may be implemented in connection withnumerous other device configurations.

The operations described and depicted in the illustrative methods,process flows, and use cases of FIGS. 1-13 may be carried out orperformed in any suitable order, such as the depicted orders, as desiredin various example embodiments of the disclosure. Additionally, incertain example embodiments, at least a portion of the operations may becarried out in parallel. Furthermore, in certain example embodiments,less, more, or different operations than those depicted in FIGS. 1-13may be performed.

Although specific embodiments of the disclosure have been described, oneof ordinary skill in the art will recognize that numerous othermodifications and alternative embodiments are within the scope of thedisclosure. For example, any of the functionality and/or processingcapabilities described with respect to a particular device or componentmay be performed by any other device or component. Further, whilevarious illustrative implementations and architectures have beendescribed in accordance with embodiments of the disclosure, one ofordinary skill in the art will appreciate that numerous othermodifications to the illustrative implementations and architecturesdescribed herein are also within the scope of this disclosure.

Certain aspects of the disclosure are described above with reference toblock and flow diagrams of systems, methods, apparatuses, and/orcomputer program products according to example embodiments. It will beunderstood that one or more blocks of the block diagrams and flowdiagrams, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and the flowdiagrams, respectively, may be implemented by the execution ofcomputer-executable program instructions. Likewise, some blocks of theblock diagrams and flow diagrams may not necessarily need to beperformed in the order presented, or may not necessarily need to beperformed at all, according to some embodiments. Further, additionalcomponents and/or operations beyond those depicted in blocks of theblock and/or flow diagrams may be present in certain embodiments.

Accordingly, blocks of the block diagrams and flow diagrams supportcombinations of means for performing the specified functions,combinations of elements or steps for performing the specifiedfunctions, and program instruction means for performing the specifiedfunctions. It will also be understood that each block of the blockdiagrams and flow diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the blockdiagrams and flow diagrams, may be implemented by special-purpose,hardware-based computer systems that perform the specified functions,elements or steps, or combinations of special-purpose hardware andcomputer instructions.

Illustrative Computer Architecture

FIG. 14 is a schematic block diagram of one or more illustrativecomputer system(s) 1400 in accordance with one or more exampleembodiments of the disclosure. The computer system(s) 1400 may includeany suitable computing device including, but not limited to, a serversystem, a voice interaction device, a mobile device such as asmartphone, a tablet, an e-reader, a wearable device, or the like; adesktop computer; a laptop computer; a content streaming device; or thelike. The computer system(s) 1400 may correspond to an illustrativedevice configuration for the controller(s) or computer system(s) ofFIGS. 1-13.

The computer system(s) 1400 may be configured to communicate with one ormore servers, user devices, or the like. The computer system(s) 1400 maybe configured to control sortation system components.

The computer system(s) 1400 may be configured to communicate via one ormore networks. Such network(s) may include, but are not limited to, anyone or more different types of communications networks such as, forexample, cable networks, public networks (e.g., the Internet), privatenetworks (e.g., frame-relay networks), wireless networks, cellularnetworks, telephone networks (e.g., a public switched telephonenetwork), or any other suitable private or public packet-switched orcircuit-switched networks. Further, such network(s) may have anysuitable communication range associated therewith and may include, forexample, global networks (e.g., the Internet), metropolitan areanetworks (MANs), wide area networks (WANs), local area networks (LANs),or personal area networks (PANs). In addition, such network(s) mayinclude communication links and associated networking devices (e.g.,link-layer switches, routers, etc.) for transmitting network trafficover any suitable type of medium including, but not limited to, coaxialcable, twisted-pair wire (e.g., twisted-pair copper wire), opticalfiber, a hybrid fiber-coaxial (HFC) medium, a microwave medium, a radiofrequency communication medium, a satellite communication medium, or anycombination thereof.

In an illustrative configuration, the computer system(s) 1400 mayinclude one or more processors (processor(s)) 1402, one or more memorydevices 1404 (also referred to herein as memory 1404), one or moreinput/output (I/O) interface(s) 1406, one or more network interface(s)1408, one or more sensor(s) or sensor interface(s) 1410, one or moretransceiver(s) 1412, one or more optional display(s) 1414, one or moreoptional microphone(s) 1416, and data storage 1420. The computersystem(s) 1400 may further include one or more bus(es) 1418 thatfunctionally couple various components of the computer system(s) 1400.The computer system(s) 1400 may further include one or more antenna(e)1430 that may include, without limitation, a cellular antenna fortransmitting or receiving signals to/from a cellular networkinfrastructure, an antenna for transmitting or receiving Wi-Fi signalsto/from an access point (AP), a Global Navigation Satellite System(GNSS) antenna for receiving GNSS signals from a GNSS satellite, aBluetooth antenna for transmitting or receiving Bluetooth signals, aNear Field Communication (NFC) antenna for transmitting or receiving NFCsignals, and so forth. These various components will be described inmore detail hereinafter.

The bus(es) 1418 may include at least one of a system bus, a memory bus,an address bus, or a message bus, and may permit the exchange ofinformation (e.g., data (including computer-executable code), signaling,etc.) between various components of the computer system(s) 1400. Thebus(es) 1418 may include, without limitation, a memory bus or a memorycontroller, a peripheral bus, an accelerated graphics port, and soforth. The bus(es) 1418 may be associated with any suitable busarchitecture including, without limitation, an Industry StandardArchitecture (ISA), a Micro Channel Architecture (MCA), an Enhanced ISA(EISA), a Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) architecture,an Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) architecture, a Peripheral ComponentInterconnect (PCI) architecture, a PCI-Express architecture, a PersonalComputer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) architecture, aUniversal Serial Bus (USB) architecture, and so forth.

The memory 1404 of the computer system(s) 1400 may include volatilememory (memory that maintains its state when supplied with power) suchas random access memory (RAM) and/or non-volatile memory (memory thatmaintains its state even when not supplied with power) such as read-onlymemory (ROM), flash memory, ferroelectric RAM (FRAM), and so forth.Persistent data storage, as that term is used herein, may includenon-volatile memory. In certain example embodiments, volatile memory mayenable faster read/write access than non-volatile memory. However, incertain other example embodiments, certain types of non-volatile memory(e.g., FRAM) may enable faster read/write access than certain types ofvolatile memory.

In various implementations, the memory 1404 may include multipledifferent types of memory such as various types of static random accessmemory (SRAM), various types of dynamic random access memory (DRAM),various types of unalterable ROM, and/or writeable variants of ROM suchas electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flashmemory, and so forth. The memory 1404 may include main memory as well asvarious forms of cache memory such as instruction cache(s), datacache(s), translation lookaside buffer(s) (TLBs), and so forth. Further,cache memory such as a data cache may be a multi-level cache organizedas a hierarchy of one or more cache levels (L1, L2, etc.).

The data storage 1420 may include removable storage and/or non-removablestorage including, but not limited to, magnetic storage, optical diskstorage, and/or tape storage. The data storage 1420 may providenon-volatile storage of computer-executable instructions and other data.The memory 1404 and the data storage 1420, removable and/ornon-removable, are examples of computer-readable storage media (CRSM) asthat term is used herein.

The data storage 1420 may store computer-executable code, instructions,or the like that may be loadable into the memory 1404 and executable bythe processor(s) 1402 to cause the processor(s) 1402 to perform orinitiate various operations. The data storage 1420 may additionallystore data that may be copied to the memory 1404 for use by theprocessor(s) 1402 during the execution of the computer-executableinstructions. Moreover, output data generated as a result of executionof the computer-executable instructions by the processor(s) 1402 may bestored initially in the memory 1404, and may ultimately be copied to thedata storage 1420 for non-volatile storage.

More specifically, the data storage 1420 may store one or more operatingsystems (O/S) 1422; one or more database management systems (DBMS) 1424;and one or more program module(s), applications, engines,computer-executable code, scripts, or the like. Some or all of thesemodule(s) may be sub-module(s). Any of the components depicted as beingstored in the data storage 1420 may include any combination of software,firmware, and/or hardware. The software and/or firmware may includecomputer-executable code, instructions, or the like that may be loadedinto the memory 1404 for execution by one or more of the processor(s)1402. Any of the components depicted as being stored in the data storage1420 may support functionality described in reference to correspondingcomponents named earlier in this disclosure.

The data storage 1420 may further store various types of data utilizedby the components of the computer system(s) 1400. Any data stored in thedata storage 1420 may be loaded into the memory 1404 for use by theprocessor(s) 1402 in executing computer-executable code. In addition,any data depicted as being stored in the data storage 1420 maypotentially be stored in one or more datastore(s) and may be accessedvia the DBMS 1424 and loaded in the memory 1404 for use by theprocessor(s) 1402 in executing computer-executable code. Thedatastore(s) may include, but are not limited to, databases (e.g.,relational, object-oriented, etc.), file systems, flat files,distributed datastores in which data is stored on more than one node ofa computer network, peer-to-peer network datastores, or the like.

The processor(s) 1402 may be configured to access the memory 1404 andexecute the computer-executable instructions loaded therein. Forexample, the processor(s) 1402 may be configured to execute thecomputer-executable instructions of the various program module(s),applications, engines, or the like of the computer system(s) 1400 tocause or facilitate various operations to be performed in accordancewith one or more embodiments of the disclosure. The processor(s) 1402may include any suitable processing unit capable of accepting data asinput, processing the input data in accordance with storedcomputer-executable instructions, and generating output data. Theprocessor(s) 1402 may include any type of suitable processing unitincluding, but not limited to, a central processing unit, amicroprocessor, a Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC)microprocessor, a Complex Instruction Set Computer (CISC)microprocessor, a microcontroller, an Application Specific IntegratedCircuit (ASIC), a Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), aSystem-on-a-Chip (SoC), a digital signal processor (DSP), and so forth.Further, the processor(s) 1402 may have any suitable microarchitecturedesign that includes any number of constituent components such as, forexample, registers, multiplexers, arithmetic logic units, cachecontrollers for controlling read/write operations to cache memory,branch predictors, or the like. The microarchitecture design of theprocessor(s) 1402 may be capable of supporting any of a variety ofinstruction sets.

Referring now to other illustrative components depicted as being storedin the data storage 1420, the O/S 1422 may be loaded from the datastorage 1420 into the memory 1404 and may provide an interface betweenother application software executing on the computer system(s) 1400 andthe hardware resources of the computer system(s) 1400. Morespecifically, the O/S 1422 may include a set of computer-executableinstructions for managing the hardware resources of the computersystem(s) 1400 and for providing common services to other applicationprograms (e.g., managing memory allocation among various applicationprograms). In certain example embodiments, the O/S 1422 may controlexecution of the other program module(s). The O/S 1422 may include anyoperating system now known or which may be developed in the futureincluding, but not limited to, any server operating system, anymainframe operating system, or any other proprietary or non-proprietaryoperating system.

The DBMS 1424 may be loaded into the memory 1404 and may supportfunctionality for accessing, retrieving, storing, and/or manipulatingdata stored in the memory 1404 and/or data stored in the data storage1420. The DBMS 1424 may use any of a variety of database models (e.g.,relational model, object model, etc.) and may support any of a varietyof query languages. The DBMS 1424 may access data represented in one ormore data schemas and stored in any suitable data repository including,but not limited to, databases (e.g., relational, object-oriented, etc.),file systems, flat files, distributed datastores in which data is storedon more than one node of a computer network, peer-to-peer networkdatastores, or the like. In those example embodiments in which thecomputer system(s) 1400 is a mobile device, the DBMS 1424 may be anysuitable lightweight DBMS optimized for performance on a mobile device.

Referring now to other illustrative components of the computer system(s)1400, the input/output (I/O) interface(s) 1406 may facilitate thereceipt of input information by the computer system(s) 1400 from one ormore I/O devices as well as the output of information from the computersystem(s) 1400 to the one or more I/O devices. The I/O devices mayinclude any of a variety of components such as a display or displayscreen having a touch surface or touchscreen; an audio output device forproducing sound, such as a speaker; an audio capture device, such as amicrophone; an image and/or video capture device, such as a camera; ahaptic unit; and so forth. Any of these components may be integratedinto the computer system(s) 1400 or may be separate. The I/O devices mayfurther include, for example, any number of peripheral devices such asdata storage devices, printing devices, and so forth.

The I/O interface(s) 1406 may also include an interface for an externalperipheral device connection such as universal serial bus (USB),FireWire, Thunderbolt, Ethernet port or other connection protocol thatmay connect to one or more networks. The I/O interface(s) 1406 may alsoinclude a connection to one or more of the antenna(e) 1430 to connect toone or more networks via a wireless local area network (WLAN) (such asWi-Fi) radio, Bluetooth, ZigBee, and/or a wireless network radio, suchas a radio capable of communication with a wireless communicationnetwork such as a Long Term Evolution (LTE) network, WiMAX network, 3Gnetwork, a ZigBee network, etc.

The computer system(s) 1400 may further include one or more networkinterface(s) 1408 via which the computer system(s) 1400 may communicatewith any of a variety of other systems, platforms, networks, devices,and so forth. The network interface(s) 1408 may enable communication,for example, with one or more wireless routers, one or more hostservers, one or more web servers, and the like via one or more networks.

The antenna(e) 1430 may include any suitable type of antenna depending,for example, on the communications protocols used to transmit or receivesignals via the antenna(e) 1430. Non-limiting examples of suitableantennae may include directional antennae, non-directional antennae,dipole antennae, folded dipole antennae, patch antennae, multiple-inputmultiple-output (MIMO) antennae, or the like. The antenna(e) 1430 may becommunicatively coupled to one or more transceivers 1412 or radiocomponents to which or from which signals may be transmitted orreceived.

As previously described, the antenna(e) 1430 may include a cellularantenna configured to transmit or receive signals in accordance withestablished standards and protocols, such as Global System for MobileCommunications (GSM), 3G standards (e.g., Universal MobileTelecommunications System (UMTS), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access(W-CDMA), CDMA2000, etc.), 4G standards (e.g., Long-Term Evolution(LTE), WiMax, etc.), direct satellite communications, or the like.

The antenna(e) 1430 may additionally, or alternatively, include a Wi-Fiantenna configured to transmit or receive signals in accordance withestablished standards and protocols, such as the IEEE 802.11 family ofstandards, including via 2.4 GHz channels (e.g., 802.11b, 802.11g,802.11n), 5 GHz channels (e.g., 802.11n, 802.11ac), or 60 GHz channels(e.g., 802.11ad). In alternative example embodiments, the antenna(e)1430 may be configured to transmit or receive radio frequency signalswithin any suitable frequency range forming part of the unlicensedportion of the radio spectrum.

The antenna(e) 1430 may additionally, or alternatively, include a GNSSantenna configured to receive GNSS signals from three or more GNSSsatellites carrying time-position information to triangulate a positiontherefrom. Such a GNSS antenna may be configured to receive GNSS signalsfrom any current or planned GNSS such as, for example, the GlobalPositioning System (GPS), the GLONASS System, the Compass NavigationSystem, the Galileo System, or the Indian Regional Navigational System.

The transceiver(s) 1412 may include any suitable radio component(s)for—in cooperation with the antenna(e) 1430—transmitting or receivingradio frequency (RF) signals in the bandwidth and/or channelscorresponding to the communications protocols utilized by the computersystem(s) 1400 to communicate with other devices. The transceiver(s)1412 may include hardware, software, and/or firmware for modulating,transmitting, or receiving—potentially in cooperation with any ofantenna(e) 1430—communications signals according to any of thecommunications protocols discussed above including, but not limited to,one or more Wi-Fi and/or Wi-Fi direct protocols, as standardized by theIEEE 802.11 standards, one or more non-Wi-Fi protocols, or one or morecellular communications protocols or standards. The transceiver(s) 1412may further include hardware, firmware, or software for receiving GNSSsignals. The transceiver(s) 1412 may include any known receiver andbaseband suitable for communicating via the communications protocolsutilized by the computer system(s) 1400. The transceiver(s) 1412 mayfurther include a low noise amplifier (LNA), additional signalamplifiers, an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter, one or more buffers, adigital baseband, or the like.

The sensor(s)/sensor interface(s) 1410 may include or may be capable ofinterfacing with any suitable type of sensing device such as, forexample, inertial sensors, force sensors, thermal sensors, photocells,and so forth. Example types of inertial sensors may includeaccelerometers (e.g., MEMS-based accelerometers), gyroscopes, and soforth.

The optional display(s) 1414 may be configured to output light and/orrender content. The optional speaker(s)/microphone(s) 1416 may be anydevice configured to receive analog sound input or voice data.

It should be appreciated that the program module(s), applications,computer-executable instructions, code, or the like depicted in FIG. 14as being stored in the data storage 1420 are merely illustrative and notexhaustive and that processing described as being supported by anyparticular module may alternatively be distributed across multiplemodule(s) or performed by a different module. In addition, variousprogram module(s), script(s), plug-in(s), Application ProgrammingInterface(s) (API(s)), or any other suitable computer-executable codehosted locally on the computer system(s) 1400, and/or hosted on othercomputing device(s) accessible via one or more networks, may be providedto support functionality provided by the program module(s),applications, or computer-executable code depicted in FIG. 14 and/oradditional or alternate functionality. Further, functionality may bemodularized differently such that processing described as beingsupported collectively by the collection of program module(s) depictedin FIG. 14 may be performed by a fewer or greater number of module(s),or functionality described as being supported by any particular modulemay be supported, at least in part, by another module. In addition,program module(s) that support the functionality described herein mayform part of one or more applications executable across any number ofsystems or devices in accordance with any suitable computing model suchas, for example, a client-server model, a peer-to-peer model, and soforth. In addition, any of the functionality described as beingsupported by any of the program module(s) depicted in FIG. 14 may beimplemented, at least partially, in hardware and/or firmware across anynumber of devices.

It should further be appreciated that the computer system(s) 1400 mayinclude alternate and/or additional hardware, software, or firmwarecomponents beyond those described or depicted without departing from thescope of the disclosure. More particularly, it should be appreciatedthat software, firmware, or hardware components depicted as forming partof the computer system(s) 1400 are merely illustrative and that somecomponents may not be present or additional components may be providedin various embodiments. While various illustrative program module(s)have been depicted and described as software module(s) stored in thedata storage 1420, it should be appreciated that functionality describedas being supported by the program module(s) may be enabled by anycombination of hardware, software, and/or firmware. It should further beappreciated that each of the above-mentioned module(s) may, in variousembodiments, represent a logical partitioning of supportedfunctionality. This logical partitioning is depicted for ease ofexplanation of the functionality and may not be representative of thestructure of software, hardware, and/or firmware for implementing thefunctionality. Accordingly, it should be appreciated that functionalitydescribed as being provided by a particular module may, in variousembodiments, be provided at least in part by one or more othermodule(s). Further, one or more depicted module(s) may not be present incertain embodiments, while in other embodiments, additional module(s)not depicted may be present and may support at least a portion of thedescribed functionality and/or additional functionality. Moreover, whilecertain module(s) may be depicted and described as sub-module(s) ofanother module, in certain embodiments, such module(s) may be providedas independent module(s) or as sub-module(s) of other module(s).

One or more operations of the methods, process flows, and use cases ofFIGS. 1-13 may be performed by a device having the illustrativeconfiguration depicted in FIG. 14, or more specifically, by one or moreengines, program module(s), applications, or the like executable on sucha device. It should be appreciated, however, that such operations may beimplemented in connection with numerous other device configurations.

The operations described and depicted in the illustrative methods andprocess flows of any of FIGS. 1-13 may be carried out or performed inany suitable order as desired in various example embodiments of thedisclosure. Additionally, in certain example embodiments, at least aportion of the operations may be carried out in parallel. Furthermore,in certain example embodiments, less, more, or different operations thanthose depicted in FIGS. 1-13 may be performed.

Although specific embodiments of the disclosure have been described, oneof ordinary skill in the art will recognize that numerous othermodifications and alternative embodiments are within the scope of thedisclosure. For example, any of the functionality and/or processingcapabilities described with respect to a particular device or componentmay be performed by any other device or component. Further, whilevarious illustrative implementations and architectures have beendescribed in accordance with embodiments of the disclosure, one ofordinary skill in the art will appreciate that numerous othermodifications to the illustrative implementations and architecturesdescribed herein are also within the scope of this disclosure.

Certain aspects of the disclosure are described above with reference toblock and flow diagrams of systems, methods, apparatuses, and/orcomputer program products according to example embodiments. It will beunderstood that one or more blocks of the block diagrams and flowdiagrams, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and the flowdiagrams, respectively, may be implemented by execution ofcomputer-executable program instructions. Likewise, some blocks of theblock diagrams and flow diagrams may not necessarily need to beperformed in the order presented, or may not necessarily need to beperformed at all, according to some embodiments. Further, additionalcomponents and/or operations beyond those depicted in blocks of theblock and/or flow diagrams may be present in certain embodiments.

Accordingly, blocks of the block diagrams and flow diagrams supportcombinations of means for performing the specified functions,combinations of elements or steps for performing the specifiedfunctions, and program instruction means for performing the specifiedfunctions. It will also be understood that each block of the blockdiagrams and flow diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the blockdiagrams and flow diagrams, may be implemented by special-purpose,hardware-based computer systems that perform the specified functions,elements or steps, or combinations of special-purpose hardware andcomputer instructions.

Program module(s), applications, or the like disclosed herein mayinclude one or more software components including, for example, softwareobjects, methods, data structures, or the like. Each such softwarecomponent may include computer-executable instructions that, responsiveto execution, cause at least a portion of the functionality describedherein (e.g., one or more operations of the illustrative methodsdescribed herein) to be performed.

A software component may be coded in any of a variety of programminglanguages. An illustrative programming language may be a lower-levelprogramming language such as an assembly language associated with aparticular hardware architecture and/or operating system platform. Asoftware component comprising assembly language instructions may requireconversion into executable machine code by an assembler prior toexecution by the hardware architecture and/or platform.

Another example programming language may be a higher-level programminglanguage that may be portable across multiple architectures. A softwarecomponent comprising higher-level programming language instructions mayrequire conversion to an intermediate representation by an interpreteror a compiler prior to execution.

Other examples of programming languages include, but are not limited to,a macro language, a shell or command language, a job control language, ascript language, a database query or search language, or a reportwriting language. In one or more example embodiments, a softwarecomponent comprising instructions in one of the foregoing examples ofprogramming languages may be executed directly by an operating system orother software component without having to be first transformed intoanother form.

A software component may be stored as a file or other data storageconstruct. Software components of a similar type or functionally relatedmay be stored together such as, for example, in a particular directory,folder, or library. Software components may be static (e.g.,pre-established or fixed) or dynamic (e.g., created or modified at thetime of execution).

Software components may invoke or be invoked by other softwarecomponents through any of a wide variety of mechanisms. Invoked orinvoking software components may comprise other custom-developedapplication software, operating system functionality (e.g., devicedrivers, data storage (e.g., file management) routines, other commonroutines and services, etc.), or third-party software components (e.g.,middleware, encryption, or other security software, database managementsoftware, file transfer or other network communication software,mathematical or statistical software, image processing software, andformat translation software).

Software components associated with a particular solution or system mayreside and be executed on a single platform or may be distributed acrossmultiple platforms. The multiple platforms may be associated with morethan one hardware vendor, underlying chip technology, or operatingsystem. Furthermore, software components associated with a particularsolution or system may be initially written in one or more programminglanguages, but may invoke software components written in anotherprogramming language.

Computer-executable program instructions may be loaded onto aspecial-purpose computer or other particular machine, a processor, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a particularmachine, such that execution of the instructions on the computer,processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus causes one ormore functions or operations specified in the flow diagrams to beperformed. These computer program instructions may also be stored in acomputer-readable storage medium (CRSM) that upon execution may direct acomputer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function ina particular manner, such that the instructions stored in thecomputer-readable storage medium produce an article of manufactureincluding instruction means that implement one or more functions oroperations specified in the flow diagrams. The computer programinstructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmabledata processing apparatus to cause a series of operational elements orsteps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus toproduce a computer-implemented process.

Additional types of CRSM that may be present in any of the devicesdescribed herein may include, but are not limited to, programmablerandom access memory (PRAM), SRAM, DRAM, RAM, ROM, electrically erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other memorytechnology, compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), digital versatiledisc (DVD) or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape,magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any othermedium which can be used to store the information and which can beaccessed. Combinations of any of the above are also included within thescope of CRSM. Alternatively, computer-readable communication media(CRCM) may include computer-readable instructions, program module(s), orother data transmitted within a data signal, such as a carrier wave, orother transmission. However, as used herein, CRSM does not include CRCM.

Although embodiments have been described in language specific tostructural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understoodthat the disclosure is not necessarily limited to the specific featuresor acts described. Rather, the specific features and acts are disclosedas illustrative forms of implementing the embodiments. Conditionallanguage, such as, among others, “can,” “could,” “might,” or “may,”unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understood within thecontext as used, is generally intended to convey that certainembodiments could include, while other embodiments do not include,certain features, elements, and/or steps. Thus, such conditionallanguage is not generally intended to imply that features, elements,and/or steps are in any way required for one or more embodiments or thatone or more embodiments necessarily include logic for deciding, with orwithout user input or prompting, whether these features, elements,and/or steps are included or are to be performed in any particularembodiment.

That which is claimed is:
 1. An item sorting system comprising: acontainer matrix comprising a first container slot at a first level anda second container slot at a second level; a first container disposed atthe first container slot, wherein the first container is configured toreceive items associated with a first order; a second container disposedat the second container slot, wherein the second container is configuredto receive items associated with a second order; an inbound item portionat which a first item to be sorted by the item sorting system islocated; a first mobile carrier unit configured to secure the item; afirst track at the first level, wherein the first mobile carrier unit isconfigured to move along the first track; a second track at the secondlevel, wherein the first mobile carrier unit is configured to move alongthe second track; a first ramp coupled to the inbound item portion andthe first track; a second ramp coupled to the inbound item portion andthe second track, wherein the first mobile carrier unit is configured tomove along the first ramp to access the first track, and to move alongthe second ramp to access the second track; and a controller incommunication with the first mobile carrier unit, the controllerconfigured to: determine that the first item is associated with thefirst order; cause the first mobile carrier unit to move to the inbounditem portion; cause the first mobile carrier unit to retrieve the firstitem; and cause the first mobile carrier unit to deliver the first itemto the first container using the first track.
 2. The item sorting systemof claim 1, further comprising: a container elevator configured to moveitems and containers between the first level and the second level;wherein the controller is further configured to cause the containerelevator to receive a second container at an empty container inboundportion, and to cause the first mobile carrier unit to receive thesecond container from the container elevator.
 3. The item sorting systemof claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to: determinethat each of the items associated with the first order is in the firstcontainer; and cause a second mobile carrier unit to retrieve the firstcontainer; and cause the second mobile carrier unit to deliver the firstcontainer to an outbound portion of the item sorting system.
 4. A systemcomprising: a container matrix comprising a first level and a secondlevel, the first level comprising a first plurality of container slotsconfigured to receive individual containers, and the second levelcomprising a second plurality of container slots configured to receiveindividual containers; an inbound portion at which items or containerscan be received by the system; a first track disposed at the firstlevel; a first ramp coupled to the inbound portion and the first track;a second track disposed at the second level; a second ramp coupled tothe inbound portion and the second track; a first mobile carrier unitcomprising a conveyor belt, the first mobile carrier unit configured tomove along the first track and the second track, wherein the firstmobile carrier unit is configured to (i) deposit items into containerson the first level or the second level using the conveyor belt, and (ii)receive full containers from container slots using the conveyor belt;and a controller configured to control operation of the first mobilecarrier unit; wherein the first mobile carrier unit is configured toaccess the first track using the first ramp, and to access the secondtrack using the second ramp.
 5. The system of claim 4, wherein theinbound portion comprises a queuing track, and wherein the first mobilecarrier unit is configured to move between the first track and thesecond track via the queuing track.
 6. The system of claim 5, whereinthe queuing track forms a closed loop that passes through the containermatrix.
 7. The system of claim 4, wherein the first level is a lowerlevel, and the second level is an upper level, the system furthercomprising: a chute disposed between the first track and a container ina container slot on the lower level; wherein items deposited into thechute by mobile carrier units on the second track are directed into thecontainer.
 8. The system of claim 4, wherein each of the first pluralityof container slots and the second plurality of container slots furthercomprises: a lift mechanism configured to adjust an angle of acontainer; and an extender arm, drive rollers, or a conveyor beltconfigured to move full containers from a container slot onto the firstmobile carrier unit.
 9. The system of claim 4, further comprising: asecond mobile carrier unit configured to move along the second track;wherein the first track and the second track form respective closedloops.
 10. The system of claim 9, wherein the first mobile carrier unitis configured to move bidirectionally along the first track.
 11. Thesystem of claim 4, further comprising: a container elevator configuredto move vertically between the first track and the second track, thecontainer elevator comprising motorized rollers; wherein the containerelevator is configured to deliver empty containers or items to the firstmobile carrier unit, or to receive full containers from the first mobilecarrier unit.
 12. The system of claim 4, wherein the first mobilecarrier unit further comprises: at least two sidewalls on opposite sidesof the first mobile carrier unit; and a first door disposed transverseto the at least two sidewalls, wherein the first door in an openposition forms a chute angled towards a container; wherein the firstmobile carrier unit is configured to automatically open and close thefirst door.
 13. The system of claim 12, wherein the first mobile carrierunit further comprises: a second door disposed opposite the first door;wherein the first mobile carrier unit is configured to automaticallyopen and close the second door.
 14. The system of claim 4, furthercomprising: an outbound portion configured to transport full containersout of the system.
 15. The system of claim 14, further comprising: anempty container intake portion configured to transport empty containersinto the system; wherein the induction portion, the outbound portion,and the empty container intake portion comprise conveyor belts that aredisposed adjacent to each other.
 16. A system comprising: a containermatrix comprising a first level and a second level, the first levelcomprising a first plurality of container slots configured to receiveindividual containers, and the second level comprising a secondplurality of container slots configured to receive individualcontainers; a queueing track; a first track disposed at the first level;a first ramp coupled to the queueing track and the first track; a secondtrack disposed at the second level; a second ramp coupled to thequeueing track and the second track; a first mobile carrier unitcomprising a conveyor belt, the first mobile carrier unit configured tomove along the first track and the second track, wherein the firstmobile carrier unit is configured to (i) deposit items into containerson the first level or the second level using the conveyor belt, and (ii)receive full containers from container slots using the conveyor belt;and a controller configured to control operation of the first mobilecarrier unit; wherein the first mobile carrier unit is configured toaccess the first track using the first ramp, and to access the secondtrack using the second ramp.
 17. The system of claim 16, wherein thefirst mobile carrier unit is configured to move between the first trackand the second track via the queuing track.
 18. The system of claim 16,wherein the queuing track forms a closed loop that passes through thecontainer matrix.
 19. The system of claim 16, wherein the first level isa lower level, and the second level is an upper level, the systemfurther comprising: a chute disposed between the first track and acontainer in a container slot on the lower level; wherein itemsdeposited into the chute by mobile carrier units on the second track aredirected into the container.
 20. The system of claim 16, wherein thefirst mobile carrier unit is configured to move bidirectionally along atleast one of the first track or the second track.